Online music recommendations – Wigmore Hall’s new season

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The Last Night of the Proms is a defining point in the musical calendar; once it has past summer literally becomes autumn where classical music venues are concerned, bringing with it a whole new set of possibilities.

Except this is 2020 of course, and the rulebook for live events has not just been completely rewritten but is subject to endless revisions, as the Coronavirus pandemic regulations change and as the government resets its guidelines.

In the midst of this confusion and with (sadly) a lack of constructive action and urgency from the Department for Culture, Media & Sport, the Wigmore Hall’s unveiling of a packed new season of concerts is all the more impressive.

The hall led the return to live classical music back in June, which already seems a long time ago – and the sight of Stephen Hough playing to an empty venue might have been bittersweet but was also unexpectedly moving. Building on the success of that venture, the new season is even more ambitious.

Starting tonight, with Christian Gerhaher and Gerold Huber performing Berg and Schubert, the season runs right the way through to 22 December. During September each weekday will have two concerts, with an hour’s lunchtime recital at 1pm, broadcast by BBC Radio 3, and the evening concert at 7.30pm. All will be streamed on the Wigmore Hall channel and on YouTube.

Happily there are too many highlights for Arcana to list here – but during September you would be well advised to keep near a screen! The first lunchtime recital, on Monday 14 September, will see Alban Gerhardt and Markus Becker playing Shostakovich, Schumann and Beethoven – while other highlights of the first week include a concert from Rachel Podger and Kristian Bezuidenhout on Tuesday 15 September, with Bach and Froberger, and a richly imaginative song recital from Dame Sarah Connolly and Malcolm Martineau, the next lunchtime.

Later we have a characteristically imaginative recital from guitarist Sean Shibe (Friday 18), an all-Bach masterclass from pianist Angela Hewitt (Saturday 19), Quatuor Danel continuing their Shostakovich and Weinberg series (Wednesday 23) and a fascinating juxtaposition of Ravel and Couperin from pianist Cédric Tiberghien (Thursday 24). The following evening sees a combination of French and American songs from baritone Gerald Finley and pianist Julius Drake.

And that’s just the first week! With so many riches in store, head to the Wigmore Hall website – where you can get planning. If you’re lucky enough to live closer to London you might be considering attending in socially distanced person, but if not then the online concerts will be rich and stimulating indeed.

In order to watch the Wigmore Hall’s online content, you need to head to their website and create a free account here. Once set up, you’re ready to roll! Alternatively you can watch at the Wigmore’s own YouTube channel

Switched On – Eumig: 23 (Courier Sound)

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reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

A fascinating challenge lies behind this album. Recently Courier Sound released an album of 23 tracks in 23 minutes by their artist Alien (aka Alastair Johnson), and it was so successful that label head Stuart Bowditch decided to set the same challenge for Eumig, aka Nick Dawson.

Given Dawson’s preference for working with drawn out structures, this needed a change of approach – akin to asking Schoenberg to write wearing Webern’s hat. He has responded with a set of musical postcards that meet the brief and create a very concentrated piece of work.

What’s the music like?

Fascinating and extremely varied. Dawson has in effect created a single work by taking the small cells and knitting them together. The music moves between the ideas logically, and flits between intimate asides and much bigger textures, the camera panning out to take in enormous vistas.

Each minute has its own important part to play, but highlights include the distinctive sighing motif of Law Of Diminishing Returns, then the glitchy pair of Electronic Communication and Audio Lingual Acquisition, introducing a sharper edge to proceedings. Worship Of Heavely Bodies is appropriately stellar, while the friendly signals of Primary Colours are nicely placed. Pteroylmonoglutamic Acid (easy for you to say!) has a big presence, like a large assembly of machinery grinding into action.

Does it all work?

Yes. There are some extremely concentrated ideas here, many of which could easily run for much longer and carry the same intensity. The tapestry is woven in a compelling fashion however, Eumig’s thoughts logical to follow but also taking a few unexpected turns.

Is it recommended?

Yes. 23 is a great idea for a challenge to throw down to a composer, and for someone used to composing in much longer forms Nick Dawson handles the shorter form with aplomb. It will be interesting to see what effect this form of working has on his output in the future.

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Switched On – Richard Norris: Elements (Group Mind)

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reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

Richard Norris has kept himself busy during lockdown. As well as running the excellent Group Mind resource on Facebook (do join if you have an interest in any sort of ambient music!) he has been making music to help ease the stress created by the COVID-19 pandemic, confinement and worrisome news headlines – to name just a few of our bugbears in recent months.

Having released a series of Music for Healing tracks, Norris now heads into album territory with meditations on the five Chinese elements. He is helped by vocalist Bishi (who appears on Water) and some wonderful artwork by Mark Golding and Andy Ball, and a striking front cover image designed by Lyndon Pike.

What’s the music like?

Although his music with The Grid and Beyond The Wizards Sleeve is largely beat-driven, Norris has always shown a talent for creating musical textures that can soothe or comfort, and Elements is a fruitful use of that resource.

He uses appealing, analogue-driven sounds twinned with sequencers, making consonant musical motifs and – where required – well-crafted beats. Earth sets a solid base, its loops unfolding at a naturally relaxed pace, while Water is a more expansive structure, contrasting immersive vocals from Bishi with gentle instrumental oscillations.

Norris’s interpretation of Fire brings to mind the vision of flames lazily flickering in the half-light, with glowing embers that leave a lasting warmth. This eases us into the lovely stillness of Air, which could easily go on for longer than five minutes and not outstay its welcome, after which Space is appropriately remote, with lights twinkling in the distance.

Does it all work?

Yes. Elements is ideal for either end of the day, soothing the fevered brow but also working the brain nicely with its loops and well-constructed melodies. The music is always on the move, but the mind can choose the intensity with which it follows the designs.

Is it recommended?

Very much so. If the cover hasn’t already drawn you in then the music will. For best results the LP is strongly recommended, but anything linked to headphones will do the job. Norris offers a half hour of escapism, something we can all do with right now!

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Listening to Beethoven #57 – Opferlied

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Peanuts comic strip, drawn by Charles M. Schulz (c)PNTS

Opferlied WoO 126 for voice and piano (1795, Beethoven aged 24)

Dedication not known
Text Friedrich von Matthisson
Duration 3′

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Background and Critical Reception

Beethoven set the text to Freidrich von Matthisson‘s Opferlied on no fewer than four occasions, and there are signs that he became somewhat obsessed with its text. The ChoralWiki entry for the piece – which was eventually set in a choral version – details how Beethoven included the statement Das Schöne zu dem Guten! (“The beautiful to the good”), in his late manuscripts.

The entry goes on to describe how ‘Matthisson’s text depicts a young man in a oak grove offering a sacrifice to Zeus. The man asks Zeus to be the protector of liberty, and to give him, both now and in his old age, beautiful things, because he is good’.

This first version remained unpublished – but by the time of the fourth version Beethoven was writing for a four-part chorus and orchestra, indicating perhaps how the importance of the text had amplified.

Thoughts

The Opferlied is an invitation to the baritone to sound forth, Beethoven assigning his singer a strong melody which is doubled by the piano almost throughout.

The song is a passionate one, with long notes for the singer that make it sound rather like a hymn – and the the piano responds in reverential kind.

Recordings used

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (baritone), Jörg Demus (piano) (Deutsche Grammophon)
Hermann Prey (baritone), Leonard Hokanson (piano) (Capriccio)
Peter Schreier (tenor), Walter Obertz (piano) (Brilliant Classics)

The two baritone versions are very fine indeed, though Fischer-Dieskau’s tones are perhaps a little more luxurious. The tenor version from Peter Schreier takes the key up into F major (the baritone versions are in D) and his ringing tone is suitably dramatic.

Spotify links

Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Jörg Demus

Hermann Prey, Leonard Hokanson

Peter Schreier, Walter Obertz

You can chart the Arcana Beethoven playlist as it grows, with one recommended version of each piece we listen to. Catch up here!

Also written in 1795 Viotti –  Violin Concerto no.24 in B minor

Next up Trio for 2 oboes and cor anglais in C major Op.87

Listening to Beethoven – approaching the piano sonatas

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A piano of Aaron Walter, similar to the one Beethoven used after his arrival in Vienna in 1792.

Written by Ben Hogwood

If you’re a regular visitor to these pages – first of all, thank you! – you will have noticed Arcana’s Beethoven project has been picking up some momentum of late. So far it has covered 55 pieces from early on in his careers in Bonn, and has now followed him to Vienna and his first official publications, the three Piano Trios Op.1. That means one very significant body of work is coming into view – the Piano Sonatas.

One of the main attractions to this project was to attempt to fully appreciate this cycle of 32 works, long considered one of the finest achievements in Western music. It means that writing about these amazing pieces is potentially quite intimidating, given the body of work that already exists – and yet the appeal of the music is that anyone at any level can fully enjoy the fruit of Beethoven’s labours.

Amateur pianists – such as yours truly! – can enjoy them too. A couple of the works published as Op.49 are what I would call ‘entry level’, and I had the pleasure of playing one at university, post-Grade 5. Some famous passages are within scope, too – the slow movement of the Moonlight sonata (not the fast one!), the Pathétique (again the slow movement!) and isolated passages of some other works.

There are many, many recorded versions of the sonatas. Most complete cycles – curiously – are by male pianists, so it gives me great pleasure to have interviewed Angela Hewitt about these works, a piece I will publish soon on the site. She has nearly crossed their line with her own cycle, and we will enjoy her versions on the Hyperion label. Other guides I have chosen are ‘classic’ sets from Emil Gilels, Claudio Arrau, Stephen Kovacevich and Alfred Brendel, an older set from Wilhelm Kempff, and one of the newest of all from Igor Levit, released just last year on Sony Classical.

I also felt it important to include a cycle on pianos of Beethoven’s time, so have opted for Paul Badura-Skoda on the Arcana label, ironically, performed on now fewer than seven different fortepianos.

The cycle will start shortly with the three works published as Op.2 and dedicated to Haydn in 1795. It will then set us down in a heap with the final utterance, the C minor sonata Op.111, finished in 1822. By that point we will know an awful lot more about Beethoven, and just how these extraordinary pieces came to be. Hope you can join us for the ride!

You can chart the Arcana Beethoven playlist as it grows, with one recommended version of each piece we listen to. Catch up here: